. >> if a deal can't be reached before january the 1st we will go over that fiscal cliff we talked so much about. as the clock ticks where do merps stand on the troubled economy. peter doocy is live with brand new poll numbers. >> hi heather. we have been hearing so much about what the principal negotiators think about the way around the fiscal cliff. the latest is that president obama is troubled by speaker boehner's suggestion that tax cuts to the wealthy should be permanent while speaker boehner says the president moved the goal post and wants too much in revenue. something we don't hear about is public opinion. most registered voters 57 percent feel the best way to deal with the budget problems is with cuts in spending. 20 percent think tax increases are a better solution and a little less 18 percent favor a balanced approach of cuts and tax hikes. and when asked if raising taxes on the wealthy is enough to solve the country's budget problems, 33 percent of registered voters said yes. but man fee more, 61 percent said spending cuts are necessary as well. this comes as three quarte